The Last Prince of Ikana/Dead Kingdom
The rising sun bathed the top of the canyon in an orange glow. Near a house two people were negotiating the prices. "So your sure five hundred rupees is okay?" "Trust me there’s noting wrong with this house." "But what about all the rumors of the undead?" "I am a descendant of the people of this kingdom and can say there hasn’t been so much as a whisper of one undead creature outside of the castle." "The Castle?" "The one right behind you. that’s were all the undead are living but they never venture out" "Would I be able to go in and study them?" "Huh. You want to study them?" "Yes that’s why I moved here. its why I offered more for the house." "On second thought I just remembered this house has a basement. Seven hundred and fifty rupees" "I thought it was worth a bit more but seven hundred and fifty is ridicules. Six hundred." "Seven hundred. final offer" "Fine fine." Eden took the money and bid the scientist fare well. He walked to the edge of the canyon and looked down. Eden looked about seventeen years old but in truth he as born far back in time when things were different. He wore a brown jacket and trousers with a white vest. his hair was black and he had a single ear ring decorated with feathers which stuck out compared to the rest of his outfit. Suddenly Eden fell forward nearly falling off the canyon. A pendent fell out from beneath his vest and seemed to pull Eden towards the ground. Eden backed away from the edge clutching his chest. He walk slowly towards the castle well aware the scientist was still watching him. Something was wrong. In the three days since the curse had lifted from him his father hadn’t summoned him once. He thought he'd never need to go back there again. Once the house was sold he was going to use the money to live away from the cursed place. But now he was being summoned and no one could run from a summoning by the king of Ikana. Eden entered the dark throne room. Red curtains covered the windows. Eden's father was sitting on the far side of the room with his two highest ranking henchmen. The curse was still heavily inflicted on all three. All where still noting but bones and attitude. "My son" bellows the king. "I see you were unable to resist a summon." "I’m not in the mood for games. Why did you bring me here? I’m leaving whether you want me too or not" "Perfect" said the wider of the two underlings. "What do you mean by that?" asks Eden. "Your going to do some work for us" said the other bodyguard. "My son. The curse that has been set on us can now be lifted. It has already been lifted on you but at a high price. Are studies show the curse is only temporally lifted from you." "Your joking" moans Eden. "I’m afraid not. You can lift the curse from all of us though. Your self included." "How long?" "How long what?" "How long do I have before I become like you again?" "Ten days total. That means one week remains for you. Unless you can lift it properly from us all." "And how do I do that?" "You should not of run off as soon as you could that was foolish." "Why didn’t you summon me back right away then?" "Because I wanted you to have a small taste of freedom before you start your quest." "Quest. It's really going to take that long." "I will cast certain spells on you to stop you needing sleep and food" "You mean I’m going to be working non stop for the next seven days!" "Yes. You know where this curse comes from." "You’ve told me every hour for four hundred years" "Stone tower temple. But even in your current form you will be unable to enter it." "Just tell me where I have to go first." "A cave in the hill side. The source of the river." "What will I find there?" "A sword." Eden left the castle annoyed by how the events turned out. The scientist was still outside but now there was a little girl as well. Strange thought Eden. He didn’t mention anyone else would be living here. It might not be the place for a child. The water wheel still works though just encase something does happen. Suddenly a foul wind from the east blew over the canyon. Eden looks up at the cave of the river's source. "I suppose I should get going" he said out loud to himself. As Eden got near to the cave, voices could be heard from inside. He stopped by the entrance and listened. "What do you think your doing!" "Resurrecting Ikana." "But if you do this no one will be able to remove the curse." "Curse! This is not a curse. This is a blessing. We shall never truly die. We will roam this land for ever. No one can stop us. Not even you brother." At that moment strange music came from the cavern. The voices stopped suddenly when the music had started. After a while the music stopped and Eden entered the small cave. He had been in here a couple of times before the curse came but it was different. Smaller. With noting in it. No sword. No owners of the voices. "So what do I do now?" he asks the pendant. Surprisingly it answered. "Play a song" "What? Wait what do you mean? Why?" Eden took out his recorder and looked at it. He only knew one song. Four hundred years and he only ever bothered to learn one song. Slowly he played the Elegy of Emptiness and to his surprise the water drained from the cave. At the bottom was a sword. It was huge almost as big as his fathers sword and would need two hands to wield. It also seemed to be made of bone. It was decorated with feathers and a dark jewel was set in to its hilt. Stepping forward Eden gripped the blade and pulled it out of the sand. All of a sudden laughing filled the cavern. "It worked. No one will venture here now" "Where are you" challenged Eden. "Show your self!" Noting but laughing replied. Eden backed out of the cavern slowly. Outside however was a shocking sight. Zombie like creatures were climbing out of the well and emerging from the castle. Eden grabbed his pendent "What’s going on?" A voice replied but it was not his fathers. "You can not stop it now. We know. You fear the dead" the voice sounded childish and thought the whole thing was a joke. "Who are you? What have you done?" "O I didn’t do this... You did." At that moment the zombies began advancing on Eden. "Damn". Eden ran but they were everywhere. They stared at him and he couldn’t move. "O damn.... Dad! What the hell is going on?!" He broke away but had no where to run. He was at the canyon edge. A hooded figure appeared out of the ground in front of him. Swords out. "What have you done?" The figure attacked and Eden fell off the canyon. Eden hit the wooden platform below. The last thing he saw before slipping out of consciousness was the moon. Had it always been visible during the day? On to the next chapter